Parkerford Trailhead to Spring City - 3 Miles

Parkerford Trailhead 

Spring City 

The Parker Ford Trailhead is located at 724 and Linfield Rd. The parking lot is paved and is not gated. There are not any facilities at the trailhead or along the trail. The 3 miles of this trail section are fairly level, rising about 15 feet to Crab Hill and then dropping 30 feet to Spring City. There is hunting allowed on the state game lands across the river in Montgomery County. It is a multi use trail including horseback riding. Motorized vehicles are prohibited.

Trail Information

• Length: 3.0 miles
• Surface: Asphalt
• Restrooms: Spring City (Restaurants)
• No winter trail maintenance

Helpful Resources

• Pennhurst Asylum Tours

As you walk past the water treatment plant, Crab Hill is on the right. This section of the trail is shaded during the winter and may have ice on it even when other sections are clear. Over the top of the hill is the Pennhurst State School and Hospital campus built from 1903 to 1929. Many of the buildings are now in ruin. Pennhurst Asylum is now a haunted attraction and is open for tours through pennhurstasylum.com I've taken the photography tour and did not feel uneasy. I wish the buildings could be restored, but only a few have been maintained.

Further down the trail is the Pennhurst Power Plant in East Vincent Township that powered the school and hospital. The trail runs on the old tracks of the Pennsylvania railroad that supplied the power plant with coal. The course of the Schuylkill River was changed to accommodate the railroad, creating Mill Pond from the section of the river that was blocked off.

The Schuylkill canal ran between Church Rd. and mill Pond as shown in the 1946 aerial photo. A section of the canal is still visible between Church Rd. and Mill Pond.

John Urbanski
www.SRT60.com

Tags

Parker Ford Parkerford Pennhurst Schuylkill River Schuylkill River Trail Spring City SRT

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